Andrew Mills/The Star-LedgerJets coach Rex Ryan said Mark Sanchez' five interceptions weren't the sole reason the Jets lost to the Bills, but the coach admits the Jets will have to "be smart'' with Sanchez.
After sorting through the wreckage that was the Jets’ humiliating 16-13 overtime loss, Jets coach Rex Ryan said it’s on the coaching staff to help rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez get his swagger back.

Sanchez threw five interceptions against the Bills, completing just 10 of 29 passes for 119 yards. His final interception set up the game-winning field goal.

Ryan hinted the plan is to simplify the offense and put the onus on the offensive line and running game. The Jets rushed for 318 yards against the Bills, second-most in club history, but Sanchez continued to throw the ball.

Ryan attributed some of those throws to several pre-snap penalties that put the Jets in passing situations.

‘‘Was it just the play of Mark Sanchez that got us beat?’’ Ryan asked Monday. ‘‘No. But we have to realize that this isn’t a guy that’s played 20 years in the league.

"He’s got an unbelievable amount of talent, but we’ve got to be smart with him. I remember Ben Roethlisberger. Pittsburgh was smart what they did and they won a ton of games.’’

Sanchez has thrown 163 passes this season, tied for the 16th-most in the league. Ryan has repeatedly boasted how the Jets have thrown the entire playbook at Sanchez because he can handle it.

Perhaps he can’t. Sanchez had four turnovers against the Saints and then became unhinged on Sunday. In both games, Sanchez forced balls into coverage, locked onto receivers and overthrew open receivers.

‘‘(Sanchez) has to realize that sometimes it’s okay to take the incompletion,’’ Ryan said.
Interestingly, Ryan said the acquisition of wide receiver Braylon Edwards has been both a blessing and a curse.

‘‘You see different coverages now, more two-deep,’’ Ryan said. ‘‘The reads, they take longer. Sometimes, when you have the middle closed, where are you going to throw it? It’s good news-bad news (having Edwards).’’

The Jets’ 14 penalties were their most since 1996 and has left Ryan incensed. He’s particularly angry at S James Ihedigbo for throwing a punch at Bills TE Derek Fine in overtime on the opening kickoff. He hinted Ihedigbo may be fined, benched or even released.

‘‘You guys will see (what he’s going to do),’’ Ryan said.

Problem is, LB Marques Murrell also threw a punch at Fine that landed, although he wasn’t penalized.

The Jets’ 318 yards rushing was the second-most in a losing effort in NFL history, behind the 320 yards gained by the Cleveland Rams in a 1944 loss to the Washington Redskins.

Ryan said he threw the red challenge flag on a punt return late in the fourth quarter, even though the Jets would have gained just six yards on the play, because he was certain he saw returner Fred Jackson go out of bounds on the Jumbo screen. He insisted the six yards couldn’t have made the difference on a long field-goal attempt.

Unfortunately, Ryan said the officials didn’t have the same camera angle and the challenge was denied. Bills K Rian Lindell missed a 46-yarder at the end of regulation.